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<\/div>\nMorocco\u2019s national football team has donated\u00a0blood\u00a0after the deadly earthquake hit their country, killing more than 2,000 people.<\/p>\n
Friday night\u2019s 6.8-magnitude quake has killed thousands and injured at least 2,059 people \u2013 1,404 critically \u2013 with the death toll expected to rise.<\/p>\n
The team was due to play an African Cup of Nations qualifier against\u00a0Liberia\u00a0on Saturday in Agadir, 205km (127 miles) south-west of\u00a0Marrakesh, but the game was cancelled.<\/p>\n
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Players and staff of the Atlas Lions entered a blood transfusion centre to shouts and cheers, a video posted to social media shows. Players smiled and gave the thumbs up as they sat in chairs donating blood in their football kit.<\/p>\n
Amal Duraid, the director of the Regional Centre for Blood Transfusion in Casablanca, launched an urgent appeal for blood donations to help the people injured by the earthquake.<\/p>\n
\u201cI appeal to all citizens across Morocco to go to the nearest centres to donate blood, given that the death toll from the earthquake is on the rise,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
A number of residents gathered to donate blood in several cities, including Marrakesh and Rabat.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, soldiers and workers brought water and supplies to mountain villages in ruins on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Those left homeless by the destruction slept outside on Saturday, in the streets of the ancient city of Marrakech or under makeshift canopies in Atlas Mountain towns like Moulay Brahim.<\/p>\n
The worst destruction is in small, rural communities that are hard for rescuers to reach because of the mountainous terrain.<\/p>\n
Flags were lowered across Morocco, as King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning starting on Sunday.<\/p>\n
The army mobilised specialised search and rescue teams, and the king ordered water, food rations and shelter to be provided to those who had lost their homes.<\/p>\n
The king called for mosques across the kingdom to hold prayers on Sunday for the victims, many of whom were buried on Saturday amid the frenzy of rescue work nearby.<\/p>\n
Some Moroccans complained on social networks that the government was not allowing more international help.<\/p>\n
The UN said it had a team in Morocco coordinating with authorities there about how international partners could provide support.<\/p>\n
The UN estimated more than 300,000 people have been affected in Marrakech and the surrounding area.<\/p>\n
The US Geological Survey said the quake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 when it hit at 11.11 pm, with shaking that lasted several seconds.<\/p>\n
The agency added that a magnitude 4.9 aftershock hit 19 minutes later.<\/p>\n
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